What can we learn from the Vasa?
In the 1620s, Sweden—at the time a regional power—had concluded its wars with Denmark and Russia, but was still at war with Poland. In 1625, King Gustav II Adolf signed […]
Insights
Technical presentations
In addition to technical writing, engineers need to be able to make good technical presentations. We’ve all experienced the proverbial death by PowerPoint, so we know what makes a bad […]
Cold weather concrete
It used to be that summer was the only real construction season. Now, though, construction continues all year. Those of us who live in northern latitudes would do well to […]
Concrete cube tests
In previous blogs we’ve discussed various aspects of acceptance testing of concrete. The standard concrete compressive strength specimen in North America is a cylinder, either 6 x 12 inches or 4 x 8 inches. In most […]
Q and A: Low-carbon concrete
My project requires low-carbon concrete. What is that, anyway? There’s no universally accepted definition of low-carbon concrete. Typically, though, low-carbon concrete has a lower global warming potential than traditional concrete […]
First things first
Although I’m not a devotee of business books, I reread First Things First by Steven R. Covey, A. Roger Merrill, and Rebecca R. Merrill every few years. When it came […]
How to overcome writer’s block
A few weeks ago I gave my students their first lecture on technical writing. As part of their two-semester capstone course, they produce a comprehensive report for their client. The […]
How natural experiments inform public health
Previous posts on this blog have explored learning—or failing to learn—from experience. Ultimately, survival and flourishing depend on being able to extract the right lessons from experience. Ideally, experiences would […]
Wherever you go, there you are
Who first observed that “wherever you go, there you are”? Buckaroo Banzai? Confucius? While it may sound like Eastern wisdom, it seems to have a Western origin: So, the cross […]
Why women’s rights matter to everyone
While it may seem far-fetched at first, there’s a correlation between women’s rights and world peace. Violence and instability thrive where preference for sons skews demographics or women are treated […]